


Straying the Path (and Promises You're Meant to Keep)

by SpookyGhostyBear



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Childhood Trauma, Daniel isn't exactly how he seems, F/M, Government Conspiracy, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Memory Loss, Monsters are trapped on the mountain, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Papyrus (Undertale) Knows More Than He Lets On, Past Character Death, Poor Sans, Post-Barrier Breaks (Undertale), Protective Papyrus (Undertale), Reader Is Not Chara (Undertale), Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Sans (Undertale) Needs a Hug, Secret Identity, Soulmates, Time Shenanigans, Veteran Grillby (Undertale), and they were ROOMMATES, he doesn't deserve half this, soul shards, there will probably be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:00:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24498346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpookyGhostyBear/pseuds/SpookyGhostyBear
Summary: Sixteen years ago there was a major car crash at the base of Mount Ebbot and a child went missing for a little over a week. She was found without her memories of the event, or even where she had been. A few years later, an earthquake shook the mountain and the government shut down all access, warning of wild animal attacks and unstable ground.Now, backpack ready and bravery coursing through her veins, Alexis is ready to find out the truth of her time on the mountains after the crash, and the tiny charm that glows blue and flutters as she pushes forward. She's ready for anything, at least she thinks so.Until she cracks a few ribs, runs into a skeleton, and finds herself in the middle of a snow storm in the middle of summer.
Relationships: Sans (Undertale)/Original Female Character(s), Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Comments: 6
Kudos: 36





	1. Taking the climb

My arms stretched towards the void of open air that seems to swallow me slowly. The dark is so thick, I wonder idly if I’ve lost my sight completely and the entirety of the abyss is just the absent presence of light. My fingertips find something warm and soft, and I feel it twitch under the delicate pads of my fingers. Shocked, I immediately regret my wandering hand, only to have it grabbed and my body being jolted forward and down, falling forever into the silent black.

“Remember who you are. Who you used to be.” A gravelly voice whispers from inside my skull, making my temples pulsate and my head feel like it’s being split open. I claw at my throat with my free hand, trying to force out a breath that has stuck itself within my neck. My heart flutters in my throat like a bird trying to escape.

“In this world i t s k i l l o r b e k i l l e d” a more sinister voice radiates through, followed by a demonic-sounding laughter and I start screaming.

I bolt out of bed so fast that I smacked my head against another’s skull. He fell back onto my end table, cradling his forehead and letting out a string of curses that would have made a pirate blush.

“Oh, I’m so sorry Daniel!” I hollered in a half-whisper, moving to the edge of the bed and rubbing my own forehead where it was sore.

“Damn, are you alright? You were screamin’ like someone was stabbing you,” he propped himself on my table and ran a hand over his face, “I’ve never seen you do that in your sleep before.”

“I was screaming?” I said, mostly to myself. I shook the cobwebs from my mind and tried to remember my dream. 

“You wanna talk ‘bout it?” He looked at me with the frown of a tired old man. I couldn’t help but smile at him before shaking my head. Daniel has been my friend for nine years, and he always has a way of making everything better.

“Nah, I’m alright,” I yawned, “Sorry for scaring you dude, I guess I’ll have to call my doc tomorrow and tell him the terrors are back.”

“Bloody hell, I can not deal with those again,” he chuckled, “you sure you’re alright?”

“Yea,” I said, getting up, “I think I’ll just hang out for a bit before going back to bed. Sorry for waking you.” He seemed reluctant to leave, but obliged on going back to bed when I shooed him out of my room. I know he has be up late tonight for work, and I refuse to allow him to stay up with me. I slid a hoodie over my PJ shirt and slid into the hallway in my socks, careful not to smack into anything as I skated over the dark wood floor. Daniel’s tiny tabby cat, Ruzzle, came mewling over from his perch on the window seat once I was within sight, blinking his eye at me and stretching out on the little carpet in front of the couch. Daniel had rescued him two years ago after the poor thing has been attacked by a gang of raccoons behind the diner his mom works at. He had lost half his tail and one of his eyes are dead, but he’s an amazing little guy.

“Hey Ruz buddy,” I smiled, scooping him up and scratching his ear, “Did daddy forget to open your window for you?” He meowed as if in response and I curled up in the window seat with him, propping open the tiny window in the center to let in a cool breeze accompanied by the soft sounds of late night traffic. The cat immediately began it’s awkward broken purring and rubbing it’s head and neck against my throat as it mewled in content. 

I can’t help but wonder about the dream. The same dream I’ve had since I was a child, when I lost my memory. 

A car accident had killed my mother and father when I was eleven and left me with no memory of my life before that day. There was bustling noise through our tiny town for years after the accident, some saying that I was a cursed child or something because I had apparently been missing in the woods of Mount Ebott by the crash site for weeks before the police found me. They had called it a miracle that I survived, even went about questioning me if someone had been living in the woods and given me shelter and food. 

None of this plays out in my head, it’s like an empty echo in a void. The only thing I can remember is my dreams. 

My Night Terrors. 

Terrors that had me pulled out of foster home after foster home because no one wanted to deal with a “problem child.” Terrors that sometimes came during the day where I would simply black out and come to sometimes days later. The doctors diagnosed me with disorder after disorder, at least after they finally came around to believing me and not thinking I was just making the whole thing up to gain attention. They housed me in a psychiatric institution after a suicide attempt for a year and finally released me back into the world for good behavior (heavilly medicated at the time as well).

I never fit in that old town. 

When I turned 18, I packed all my things, just enough to fill a backpack, and as soon as I graduated from High School I was gone. I backpacked my way to the town on the other side of the mountain where I searched for a job at a flower shop while living in a run down motel off the money I had inherited from my parent’s death (which was given to me on the day of my 18th birthday.) After three months, I ended up looking through the papers where I found Daniel’s ad for needing a roommate. The cost was about half of what the motel was, so I jumped at the opportunity. 

We didn’t really clash well in the beginning. I’m pretty sure there was a couple of times that he was seriously thinking of kicking me out, especially when the terrors came back the first time. But, he stuck with me, and after the first year we actually started to get along. After two and a half years, we were tight, and now he and his family have pretty much adopted me as his kid sister. 

He had been there with me through all my bouts of terrors, my mood swings, my episodes, all of it. He’s honestly the best friend I could have ever wished for. 

At least, out of the ones you didn’t abandon, sunshine.

I shake the voice from my head and sigh.Sometimes, especially when I’m really exhausted, I can hear her and feel her, like she’s someplace just beyond my peripheral, leaning over my shoulder in my ear. My own personal ghost.

I stare out past the main stretch of road towards Mount Ebott. Reaching out, surrounded by dense woods and filled with winding caverns, it seems more like a pleasant hiking ground. There are fences and signs placed around the perimeter though, warning of dangerous animals and deterring trespassers from entering the grounds. I’ve always felt a pull to the mountains, a small nagging at the back of my mind. It’s like there’s a piece of me missing on those mountains, a fragment of my past that’s calling to me. Beckoning me home.

I shake the thoughts from my mind. 

A few years ago, they said a massive earthquake shook through the town centralized at the base of the mountain. The ripples had caused most of the paths to become unsafe and the government had closed off the paths because of it. It was an absolute law, but sometimes at night when I look out onto the surface I can swear I see movements and lights, some of them weirdly shaped or far too tall to be human. I haven’t told anyone though, I’m still afraid of what others might think. 

There’s no such things as monsters, Ali, now come on let’s get you back to bed.

Wouldn’t hurt to look, sunshine. I groan, receiving a squeak as I shuffle to get back up, placing Raz on the window seat to grab a cup of coffee. I stare idly at my bedroom door, thinking beyond the door to the hiking backpack in my closet. It’s not that I haven’t thought about sneaking into the mountains, but the thought of getting lost up there always gives me pause. There have been people who’ve gotten lost up there before, and there haven’t been any search parties. The government has been clear that the area is off limits, and there will be no helping those who don’t play by the rules. 

As far as I know, I’m the only person who’s ever made it back out, and even I did at the cost of my own memory.  
Tonight, I think to myself, I’m going tonight. I’ll stick to the northern path as much as I can, I can almost see two thirds of it from my bedroom window so I know it’s mostly intact. If I can keep to a path, there’s no way I can get lost. I’ll go tonight while Daniel’s working the graveyard shift and be back sometime tomorrow. He won’t even realise I’m gone, and I’ll be able to soothe the itching in my mind. 

Right?

I try to jump into my normal routine, starting with a small breakfast and cleaning the kitchen. I’m off work until monday, a five day vacation my boss has forced me to take every year. I’ve taken vacation time every year around this time, the anniversary of my return from the mountains, because that’s usually when my mind slips from me. Two years in a row I had foregone the time off, and both times I had complete meltdowns on the clock. I had been fired from my previous job the first time- I had apparently attacked a customer who had asked if we sold buttercups. I woke up in an emergency room and didn’t remember anything that happened. The second year I had curled up in the corner of the bar I work at after a patron had asked if I wanted “to have a good time” and my boss had helped me to the back room and called Daniel to come get me. Now, Markus doesn’t even require me to put in a vacation slip for this time of year, it’s always in his calendar. 

Daniel wakes up around 1, groaning and drinking coffee from a large measuring cup that takes almost two-thirds of the pot. I’m surprised to see him up so early. He usually works the night shift so seeing him up before 2 or 3 is a rarity unless he has a day off or has errands to run that he doesn’t want me to bother with. He works as security at a small factory across town.

We make small talk until he’s nearly finished with his first cup and then he tops it off with the last of the pot and pulls out the filters to make another pot. 

“So any more creep fest shite since you woke up like a rabid banshee?” He leaned against the sink casually, laughter dancing in his eyes. I smacked his arm with a laugh.

“Nah, nothing exciting, just giving Raz the love he deserves but never gets from his dad.” He rolls his eyes, mumbling something about the cat being spoiled before reaching into one of the cabinets for a can of cat food to slop into Raz’s bowl. No sooner does he crack the top, Raz is a bolt of black fur clawing at his pant leg, making him curse and nearly drop the dish on the cat’s head. 

“Damn cat!” Daniel growls, slamming the empty can into the trash can, “I feed you! You don’t attack the man that feeds you!”

I’m nearly shaking, trying not to laugh at the two. Daniel must have forgotten to crack a can last night after work, that’s usually the only time Raz gets so hyped about brunch. I stopped feeding Raz after we realized he was tricking us into getting fed second breakfasts, but I do sneak him treats as often as I can while Daniel is asleep or at work. 

OK, so maybe I do spoil him. 

“Oh by the way,” He taps me on the shoulder, pouring even more coffee into the massive cup, “I won’t be coming home after work tonight, I have to stop by my sisters and watch Haliey and make sure she gets on the bus. Sean’s having that surgery on his pancreas so she has to be there. I’ll be here tomorrow night though.” So you’re not by yourself. He’d never admit it, but I know that’s why. I’m not the only one who usually takes time off around this time of year. 

“That’s cool, tell them I love them and wish them luck. I think I’m gonna binge some anime in my room with some snacks tonight anyways.” He crinkles his nose at me and I can’t help but laugh. I’d gotten him to watch a few shows with me before, but he doesn’t really understand my love for anime. Most of the time, when we hang out we just play video games or duel in Magic the Gathering until one of us is ready to pass out. 

“Alright, just remember that all you have to do is call if you need me.” He goes back to sipping his cup. It cannot be healthy drinking that much coffee, but I just shake the thought away and head into the living room to flop on the couch, pulling one of my books out from the shelf next to the couch and cracking it open. Daniel shuffles around the apartment, eventually coming into the living room showered and in his uniform, laying next to the couch on the floor to lazily pet Raz and watch videos on his phone. When I had first moved into the apartment, he didn’t even have a couch or chairs at the island separating the kitchen from the living room. He said he preferred to sit on the ground, so I bought furniture. I still don’t think I’ve ever seen him sit on any of it though, except a beanbag chair I found on clearance that was half deflated and an awkward brown-green color that he practically slept in for a week. He doesn’t even own a bed, he uses a Japanese-style bed roll that he tucks away when he gets up, saying that a bed takes up too much room and isn’t as comfortable. 

But I’m the weird one. 

By the time Daniel has to head out for work, I’m nearly asleep on the couch. He taps the book in my hands to wake me and messes up my hair as well as the cat’s fur before hefting on his boots and promising to text when he makes it to his sister’s house in the morning. It’s starting to get dark outside, so I get up and grab the last cup of cold coffee from the carafe and swig it before sliding into my room for get ready for my climb. 

My bag is simple, just a school backpack that I’ve packed with a few medical supplies, some water, some protein bars and a spare change of sock. I’ve always had a habit of keeping a bag like this, a breakaway bag is what I used to call it. If I needed to get away, it’s all I’ll need. 

The last stop is the tiny trinket box under my bed, a keepsake of all the things I had with me as a child the day I was found, things whose symbolism was lost but still felt necessary to keep for some reason. I dig around until I find the object I’m looking for. It’s a tiny metal ball suspended on a chain what has a hinge that allows it to open. Inside is a smaller jewel that almost glows a brilliant cerulean and always seems to be warm to the touch. When it shifts, a sound like wind-chimes comes from the jewel, a soft melody that’s calming. 

I clip the jewel around my neck and the familiar weight and tingle of it help calm the anxiety starting to build. There’s almost a soft hum in my mind for a moment, and then it subsides and I feel ready to start my journey.

I slip out the front door and lock it behind me, taking the stairs on the far end of the building so I can come out the back of the complex. From there, its only a fifteen minute walk to the fence, then another five minutes to the park that the fence cuts through. I’ll be less likely to be seen from inside the woods, and there will still be enough daylight to find the path before the lamps come on and the mountain darkens completely. That’s when things will get harder, I can’t take the chance of a flashlight, but I’ve never had a hard time getting around in the dark before. How bad can it get with all the lights of the city surrounding it, right?

By the time I find the broken cobblestone of the path, I realize my mistake. The woods are denser than I thought, blocking out the cities lights, so I can barely see two feet in front of me. I’m just about to give in and grab my crank flashlight from my bag when I feel something fluttering on my chest. I freak out, swatting- thinking it’s an insect- and my hand bumps the tiny ball. It’s then that I realize the fluttering is coming from it, like a butterfly trapped in a cage. The glow seems brighter, probably because I’m in the dark. 

I hold the ball in my hand and listen to the chiming as it pressed into my hand, almost eager. I notice the glow expand and the ground lights up ever so slightly from the glow. 

Flashlight forgotten, I continue forward along the beaten path. 

The path is a lot more destroyed than I thought previously, some area’s require me to climb up almost 90 degree surfaces covered in lose rock and smooth muddy surfaces. As I continue along, the fluttering becomes more and more insistent and I start to wonder if I’ve really gone off the deep end. 

Then the ball leaps forward off my chest and tugs so hard I slide on my elbows through gravel and mud. I roll at the bottom, smacking my rib cage into a chunk of slate and wheeze as the air is forced out of my lungs. I’m cursing and wheezing, trying to pick myself off the ground when I hear a voice from the trees.

“Need a hand?”

I’m up in a second, stumbling and clutching my side as I search around for the source of the voice. I hear shuffling behind me and I freeze. This is it, I’m going to be murdered and no one will ever come looking for me. 

But why does that voice sound so familiar?

“Come on bud, don’t you know how to greet and old pal?” The tiny ball on my chest is vibrating so hard it almost hurts against my skin. I turn around, coming nearly face to face with a skeleton, two lights in his sockets acting as pupils, his hand outstretched towards me. 

“Sans?” My voice leaves my throat before I can even process what’s happening and everything shifts for a moment. 

“Shit-” the skeleton moves towards me just as my knees give out and the ground rushes up to meet me.


	2. Tell me it's all a dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Questions, questions question. Why does this place feel so familiar?

I awake with a start, clutching at the charm against my chest and gasping lungfuls of air. The air feels heavy and smells of peppermint and dust. I’m in what looks like a guest bedroom, the walls a light blue and a soft and old quilt over my legs. The air is cool, causing goosebumps on my skin. Whoever lives here must really keep the AC cranked. I try to remember how I got here, and slowly I remember taking a hike into the mountains, the fall, the skeleton-

I pull my shirt up, scanning my side and my hips for signs of bruising and scrapes. Nothing, not even my arms and knees. I’m perfectly fine, did I imagine it all? 

But I’m wearing my little charm, and it’s still fluttering sloftly against my chest, even the glow is still there against my fingers. Where am I?

There’s a knock at the door and sweat drips down my spine as I recognise the gravelly voice at the other side.

“Knock knock.” I gape like a fish, unsure how to respond.

“Wh- who’s there?” my voice warbles. There’s a pain in my head, like something’s trying to crawl out and it makes me grit my teeth. 

“Dishes” comes the voice again and I choke on a laugh. Is he really telling a knock knock joke right now?

_ Knock knock _ \- it’s like dynamite behind my eyelids, the voice matches a face. Theres two skeletons, a taller one who speaks too loud. A goat woman, a fish lady- I scream, it’s like metal behind my forehead, a film reel spun too fast and now it’s caught on fire-

Something stings my eyes and that familiar weight settles harder against my sternum, like a heavy blanket suddenly being thrown onto my chest. The tingle is stronger- colder than I remember and I gasp at the sudden shift. All at once the pain begins to subside and I open my eyes to an eyelight and a face that makes my scalp crawl and my heart thump loudly in my ears. 

“Easy there, take a deep breath- there you go.” I see a heart- an actual cartoon style heart in front of my chest, glowing almost the same blue as the pendant around my neck. The same blue as the single flaring eyelight in front of me. I cough and splutter for a moment and all at once the blue fades away with the feeling before, leaving a hear that’s a bright orange, swirling with deep green and vibrant purple. In the center is a diamond-shaped spot, glowing and moving as if it were a small shard of fire- a fire that’s cerulean blue. 

“Let’s get this back in” He reaches forward and I flinch as his hand comes towards the heart. He stops, scratching the back of his neck? Spine? The sound reminds me of grinding teeth and makes me flinch even further against the headboard. 

“What’s wrong Ali? You look like you’ve seen a ghost-”

“Wha-” I choke on my voice, “How do you know my name? Who are you? Where am I?” I can’t help the shaking in my hands. His eyelights are gone now, just empty sockets staring at the bedspread.

“You mean- You don’t remember?” There’s sweat on his forehead, a bright and translucent blue. The pendant shifts and I palm it.

“I thought- I thought you’d came back. Heh.” His palm strokes over his face, “Sorry princess, I gotta go for a minute- “ before I could say anything he was gone, phasing through the floorboards like a goddamn ghost. 

What- what was that? Why did he seem so sad?

Another flash, a tiny skeleton- a pinky promise- a tiny upside down heart. The fluttering became more insistent again and the warmth comforted my rapid beating heart. 

I’ve been here before. I stand from the bed, the floor is icy against my feet, my shoes and socks are neatly placed at the foot of the bed. There’s a single window overlooking a winterscape straight out of a cheezy christmas movie. How could it be snowing like that? It’s the middle of the summer!

_ Snowdin, the eternal snowglobe _ the words echo in my head. I’ve been here before, when I was very small. I grit my teeth, desperately trying to search for the memory, but afraid of the molten feeling from before. 

There’s a knock at the door again as I’m slipping my socks back on my feet. I almost have one shoe on when I hear a chuckle. 

“No shoes in the house, but I brought you some house slippers,” I whirl around to see him again. Sans. I remember him too, but when?

He holds out a pair of red slippers, “‘s not my rule. Paps says it’s bad to wear shoes inside ‘s all, he seems nervous, “he uh, he’ll be home soon, he’s with Undyne. She’s um, a friend of the family.”I take the slippers and for a moment his fingers touch mine and a crackle of cold hits me from the tips of my fingers to my elbow, making my arm rise with goosebumps. 

“You didn’t answer my questions,” I say dumbly, dropping the slippers to cover my feet. They’re warm like they’ve been kept on a furnace and I shiver. It doesn’t seem so good an idea to be wearing shorts and a t-shirt anymore.

“Your bag is in the living room, it’s warmer down there. I can explain when we get you warmed up, the heat’s not all that good up here.” He motions for me to follow him, grabbing the quilt as he passes and leading me out onto a foyer overlooking a living room. There’s an impressive fireplace with a flatscreen above the mantle. One of the first things I notice is the walls, some of the furniture, and even the doors are speckled with post-it notes. There must be hundreds of them, if not thousands. Some of them are written in all capital letters, some in small print, some with just little doodles on them. The second thing I notice is that the house is huge. The foyer is nearly the size of my entire apartment, and the living room is nearly just as large. 

I spot a note cluster on the door left of the stairs: SANS PLEASE REMEMBER TO EAT LUNCH, YOU NEED TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR HEALTH

Sure thing bro

KETCHUP DOES NOT COUNT AS DINNER

Sorry bro

I can’t help but chuckle. I guess the two use these to communicate , they must not see each other all that much. Maybe I can use that with Daniel when I go back to work-

“Sans-” I reach out and grab his arm when we get to the bottom stair, “how long have I been out?” Oh shit oh shit.

“Couple of hours maybe? Why?” He looks at me like I’ve grown a second head but there’s a deep blue tint to his skull. 

I take a sigh of relief, he’s probably not even halfway through his shift yet. 

“Sorry, I just, everythings so weird right now.” I groan and let him lead me to the plush looking couch. 

“So…” He stands awkwardly in front of the fire, shuffling slightly in place, “you remember my name, how much more do you remember?”

“I remember there was a crash, and everything else is just kind of pieces. Even the pieces I have now are new, I haven’t been able to remember anything since I was maybe ten or eleven when the cops found me at the base of the mountains.”

“You fell back then, here in the mountain. I was just a kid myself, Paps- my bro- was barely walking. You got hurt bad in the crash so a friend of ours healed you up and then we helped you get through the barrier- me and the king and queens two kids helped you through, cause you said your parents would be looking for you. Humans can get through the barrier no problem. You lived with us for a while before that.” He furrowed his brow bones like he was struggling to remember himself, “You promised to uh,” he paused and shuffled again, “you promised to come back someday so I gave you that to find us-” he gestured to the pendant, “a piece of me to lead you- lead you back home. Ya know, cause we-” The front door slammed open, cutting him off and sending a whirlwind of snow and cold air into the house for a moment. 

“SANS!” A tall skeleton wearing what looked like custom armor and spandex came in, his scarf ruffling in the wind before the door closed again, “WHERE IS SHE? OH I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR SO LONG TO MEET HE-” He paused, looking over to where I had burrowed deeper into the quilt to escape the cold. 

“Uh Paps, about that-”

“IS THIS HER! HELLO MISS ALEXIS, I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, YOU MAY NOT REMEMBER ME BECAUSE I WAS ONCE A BABYBONES WHEN YOU WERE HERE BEFORE!” He practically lept at me, scooping me off the sofa, blanket and all, and crushing me in a hug despite my shrieking. 

“Easy Paps! She’s still recovering!” I heard Sans just before I was deposited back onto the couch, tangled in the blankets and dizzy.

“Oh! I’m sorry Miss Alexis! I hope I haven’t hurt your injuries-”

“What injuries?” I growl and flip out off the couch and onto the floor to get out of the tangled mess, huffing and tossing the blanket away, “I’m not even bruised, which I was gonna ask about by the way.” I had honestly forgotten about my fall, and my side seemed tender, but wether that was from the fall or being squeezed to death I couldn’t tell. 

“Nyeh he heh! But of course your injuries are healed! There’s no break or bruise I haven’t been able to mend!” He wasn’t shouting anymore, seemingly a bit nervous as he wrung the mittens on his hands.

“It’s uh- It’s nice to meet you Papyrus,” I shift, wincing, “and I guess thanks for patching me up earlier.” This seems to make him happier, stretching to his full height- and holy shit is he tall- and beaming in a hero pose. He bounces away like a giddy child, hollering something about making dinner, and slips around the corner to what I assume is the kitchen. I curled in on myself, wanting nothing more than to just go back to the apartment. I could be eating snacks and watching reruns. 

“I don’t get it” I groan, my forehead threatening to split, “none of this makes any sense. I don’t even know you, how do I know this isn’t some kind of weird dream or trick? I mean- even if I knew you before, that means I only knew you for maybe a week-”

“A week?” His tone makes me snap my head to meet his gaze, his eyelights are pinpricks, “what do you mean?”

“That’s what they told me, that I was only missing in the mountains for maybe a week or so after the crash. I was found at the base of the mountain looking like I had been taken care of by someone who might be living on the paths or something,” I wave my hand dismissively, but his gaze makes my scalp tingle and my hair stand up. 

“You didn’t- you weren’t-” He runs a hand over his face again and stares at the fire, conflicted maybe? Angry?

“There’s a lot more than I thought.” He grumbles, “I’m going for a walk.” 

“Hey-” I’m barely able to move before he phases through the floor again, leaving a small patch of frost on the floorboards that quickly melts from the fire. I’m halfway between a scream and a growl, throwing the blanket from the couch to the table behind it, flinching when I nearly take out a lamp in the process. 

“He can have that affect on people” I whirl on Papyrus, whose leaning against the doorframe wearing a purple apron and wielding a wooden spoon, the tip of it stained with what looks like pasta sauce. At least, I hope that’s tomato. 

“Come now, you can help me make dinner! I’m making my specialty, spaghetti!”

Papyrus’ idea of “helping” him cook consisted of me sitting at the little breakfast nook separating the kitchen and the dining room and drinking a mug of cocoa. He apologised for Sans, saying that they had a rough upbringing and it made him “a bit of a cranky ass.” 

“You said you were a baby when I was around?” I asked when he scooted a plate of food towards me, the smells making my stomach growl and my mouth water. 

“Yes, I don’t remember much from back then, I think I may have been a year or two old, for what Sans has told me. It’s sad that you don’t remember either, Sans really has missed you.” He settled a new mug in front of me, this one filled with a sweet smelling tea that tasted like honey and something floral. 

“I guess something must have happened when I left, I honestly can’t even recall my life before the crash either, not even my parents.” I shoveled a large forkful of pasta in my mouth and nearly moaned at the taste.

“Well it’s hard to imagine, considering you’ve got at least a year missing if you don’t remember us.” I nearly choked, swallowing the mass painfully as I tried to keep tomato out of my lung.

“A year!?” I coughed out, beating a fist against my chest to try to get my breath back, “What do you mean a year?”

“You mean you don’t know?” He raised a browbone and fidgeted again, “you were in the ruins when our father found you- he was patrolling because some kids kept getting trapped in the puzzles- and you were badly hurt. Even with magic it took a few weeks for you to wake-”

“Papyrus,” I pointed a finger, “that’s impossible. I was found a week after the car crash. That’s what the doctors, the police, everyone told me!” I didn’t mean to yell, but I could feel panic start to settle in my chest.

“First of all-” He cocked a hip and crossed his arms over his chest, “I do not understand the necessity of you denying the truth nor debating me with a raised tone but I will let it slide this time as you’ve recently gone through trauma.” his tone gave me pause, “Secondly, I may not be able to remember everything as it happened, but it wouldn't be the first time that time has worked differently here.”

It’s like I was talking to a whole different person, all of the bubbly and excitable Papyrus was gone. Instead, a tall and somewhat terrifying skeleton was staring at me. Then, as quickly as it came, it was gone, and in a breath he was back to a more cheerful persona, clapping his hands and pulling a tray of garlic toast from the oven.

“I apologize for my tone, my dear- here try one of these- but my brother an I have built our lives on communication and truth, although it isn’t an exact science.” He beamed at me and settle in one of the other chairs. I couldn’t help but nod, still a little shaken at his sudden change in mood. I tried to dig into the food again, hoping to keep myself from opening my fat mouth again. I still don’t know anything about these two, and for what I have seen, it’s probably not a good idea to get on their bad side. 

Afterall, I have no idea how to make it back to the surface, let alone how to get back home. 

After a long bout of silence while we cleaned our plates, I chanced another question. 

“Sans said there was a barrier that I had to leave through, is that still a thing?” He startled, almost dropping the plates into the sink. 

“Oh no! The Barrier’s been down for a few years now, a friend came to the underground and helped to destroy it. It caused a lot of destruction on the surface though, for what I hear.” That must be what the earthquake was. I thanked Papyrus for the food and made my way back to the livingroom and to my bag, digging around in the pockets for my phone. At least if I can text Daniel and say I left to a friends house or something then he probably won't send a search party. I can also check for a map of the mountain for when I do get to the surface. I’m just about to dump my pack onto the floor when a voice scares me out of my skin. 

“Lookin’ for this?” I whirl around to see Sans holding out my cellphone. One hand is stretching his hoodie pocket out and his eyelights are a bit fuzzy, refusing to look at my face. 

“Yea, uh, thanks” I stutter, taking a moment before reaching out and grabbing it. There’s a small crack in the bottom corner, but it seems in good shape. The battery is half dead and I blink at the time and date, a weight in my stomach. A few hours- try nearly a full day. There’s seven texts and two missed calls from Daniel.

_ Hey I’m at Sarah’s, lemme know when you get this.  _

_ Got Hailey on the bus, I’ll be heading home in a bit.  _

_ Are you home? I can’t find my keys. _

_ Hey you’re not here, where you at girly?  _

_ Trying not to freak here, lemme know you’re okay. _

_ I’m not fucking playing around, where are you? _

_ I’ll leave the door unlocked, just please wake me up when you get home. Please. _

Guilt gnaws at me and my fingers hover over the keyboard for a minute. 

**_I’m okay, just got tangled up in something. I’m sorry for making you worry._ **

I’m shocked at a cold chill and I realise San’s is reading over my shoulder. I turn to say something but my phone starts ringing. How am I even getting signal up here?

I take off to the stairs as I swipe the call button, taking them two at time. 

“Daniel-”

“Were are you right now? I’m coming to get you.” his voice is hoarse, like he had been sleeping. I can just imagine him, curled up on the livingroom floor with his phone with Raz. I’ve never not answered him before, he must have been worried sick.

“You can’t I’m-” I don’t know what to say. If he knew I took up to the mountain he’d be furious and he might try to come find me. It’s too dangerous, he could get arrested for trying to hop the fence in broad daylight. They always have patrols during the day. 

“Did something happen? If someones holding you I-”

“No no, it’s nothing like that I just- I ran into a friend, someone who knows me from when I was a kid and I ended up crashing at their place.” It wasn’t technically a lie. There was a long pause and a sigh at the other end. 

“You’re telling me not to worry because you crashed at a stranger’s place? Listen, at least let me meet up with you, you sound frazzled and-” I bite my tongue, wanting to tell him I’m an adult and can take care of myself. I don’t want to hurt him, he’s been the closest thing I’ve had to family in my life. 

Instead I say, “ I’m starting to remember Danny.” and he goes silent. The words are hard to say around a lump forming in my throat. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. How was I supposed to plan for any of this?

“Remember?” I hear shifting, “that’s great Ali, what- are you sure you’re okay?”

“Just a lot to unpack is all,” I sniff, hating the tears that started to run down my cheeks, “I just- this is something I gotta do, ya know?”

He groans for a beat, “just- keep me posted and let me know if you need me. You know I’m here right? For the long haul, good or bad. I just want you to come home safe.” His words make my chest hurt. I’ve hurt him, and now he’s probably even more worried about me. 

“I’m sorry for scaring you, Danny. I’ll keep you posted.” Theres a brief grunt before the line goes dead and I press the heels of my palms to my eyes to try and calm the tears. This was supposed to be easy, a quick hike, maybe a jog of my memory, and a sneaky slide back into bed before anyone noticed I was gone. 

I should have never taken the chance. 

“Boyfriend?” I hear San’s voice from the other side of the door and I amost hiss like a cat in response. Was he listening in on me? What’s this guys problem?

“It’s rude you know, to listen on someone’s conversation” I bang my haed against the door.

“‘S also rude to invade someone’s room to take a call.” That makes me pause and I realise I’m not in the guestroom. It’s darker in this room, the curtains half drawn over the window. There’s a small bed in the corner of the room with just a bare mattress and a single blanket balled on it’s surface. There’s a writing desk that’s seen better days, haphazardly fixed in multiple places with scrap pieces of wood and screws, and the desk and floor are all covered with balled up paper, wrappers and clothing. There’s a closet at the far end opposite the bed that’s overflowing with junk and more clothing. 

The room is also frigid, frost on the corners of the walls and formed on some of the surfaces. I stumble to my feet and open the door, flushed with embarrassment and cold.

“S-sorry, I don’t know the layout and I just kinda opened the first door-” I started but he held his hands up to stop me. 

“Don’t worry ‘bout it. It’s an easy mistake, no need to get all  _ frosty _ on me. Just tryin ta break the ice.” Was that- is he cracking puns?

“That was my roommate,” I shift, awkward in the doorway, “I kinda need to get back home, he’s freaking out cause I didn’t tell him I was coming up the mountain.”

San’s expression dims a bit, smile twitching slightly.

“Can’t let you do that princess, cops’ll nab you at the fence if you go now. They aren’t necessarily nice to trespassers. I can take you to the fence tonight though.”

I smile at him, “That’d be great, thank you Sans.”

“Sure thing.” His eyelights extinguish and he moves aside so I can come out into the foyer again. He gestures to the door next to his, “you can stay in the guest room in the meantime, try not to make a racket, I work the night shift so I’m gonna take a nap.” Before I can answer, the bedroom door slams shut with so much force that the wood creaks. 

_ It’s sad that you don’t remember, San’s really missed you. _ Pap’s voice echoes in my head and that guilt rumbles in my chest again. I can’t believe I haven’t realised before now just how badly this must be for him. If I really did live with them back then, then me and Sans must have been pretty close from the sounds of it. 

It means he’s been waiting what- sixteen years for me to come back? Sixteen years and I don’t even remember him, and all I’ve done is asked a few questions and then asked to go home?

Something in my chest pangs sharply and I gasp at the pain that runs down into my fingertips. The charm on my chest feels cold all the sudden and it’s stopped fluttering, vibrating softly. I head into the guest room, pressing my back to the closed door and trying to rub the pain in my chest. Is it my heart? No- that’s not where my heart is. Maybe it’s something I damaged during the fall?

The cold is biting and the dynamite goes off again, spreading color behind my eyes. 


	3. Dynamite and Cold shoulders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ali gets a large chunk of memories, Sans puts up a wall.   
> Phone's dead, emotions are high, promises ring hollow, what more can go wrong?
> 
> Right?

I’m laying in a large bed in a room I don’t recognise. The room is small, no bigger than a child’s room, and there’s a small window to one side overlooking the snowy treeline outside. 

“I see you’ve finally awaken, little one.” There’s a voice, silky smooth and deep not far from the bed, “you’ve taken quite a fall, you are very lucky to be alive.” 

There’s a large male figure with his back to me, a tray in front of him with a tea set placed upon it. He pours a cup, swirling a disk of what looks like candy into the liquid before turning to me and placing the cup on the bedside table. He has a face that looks almost like a mask, a crack over one eye leading up to the top of his head and another running from his other eye to the top of his mouth. He reaches cautiously, cooing softly as he helps me sit up and then handing me the cup. 

“Drink up, it’ll help you heal small one.” His smile is soft, fatherly. 

“You may call me Wings, dear.”

A flash of color, I’m in a cozy living room. My leg is in a cast from the knee down, propped up on a coffee table. I’m sitting with sans on the sofa, holding a tiny swaddle while he thumbs through a slightly worn copy of  _ Peekaboo with Fluffy Bunny. _ Wings comes in with a mug of cocoa in each hand, placing them on the coffee table and reaching out to scoop Papyrus up from my lap. 

“Thank you so much for holding him, you two enjoy your cocoa while I get him settled to bed.”

We both grin and he grabs our mugs. I yell at him that it’s not fair to have a chugging contest because it burns my tongue.

Another flash and I’m riding on his shoulders, one hand holding my crutches. He complains that I’m heavy and I’m giggling, the cold making my breath come out in tiny puffs. 

Another flash and I’m sneaking into his room in the middle of the night, hobbling and crying from a nightmare. He hums to me until I fall asleep. 

“We’re sad to see you finally departing, little one.” Wings kneels in front of me on a bed of buttercups, “We musn’t keep you any longer. As you’ve said, your family must be worried. Follow the trail and you should be at the base of the mountain before dusk.”

“Will you come back?” Sans’ eyes are filled with tears. His hand comes up, pinky out. I promise to come back. I promise I promise I promise-

“Of course you’ll come back! Afterall we’re gonna be soulmates, together forever!” He smiles wide and clutches my pinky so hard it hurts, “Just keep this little piece safe until then okay? This little bell is a piece of my soul- dad says it’ll always find its way home no matter how far you go!”

_ I’m sorry Sunshine _ there’s a figure standing in the bright lights of the barrier. It’s a female with a billowing head of red hair. She had no face and in place of arms she had two long feathered wings that seemed to glow a bright green.  _ With this place you must also leave a piece of yourself, the magic here must be forgotten and you must stay with your own.  _

Tears burned my face as I pleaded, please don’t take them away from me!

_ I will send you with a gift, live bravely little soul.  _

I shot up from the floor, panting and covered in a cold sweat. The room was dark and a knock came from beside my head. 

“C’mon woman, I’m heading up weather you’re ready or not.” San’s voice came from the other side, sounding grouchier than usual. I grabbed my phone but the battery had died at some point. I scrambled up and threw the door open so hard it smacked the wall beside it and Sans gave me a stern look that quickly changed into something else I couldn’t decipher. 

“Whoa- What happened to you? You look like shit-” I couldn’t help myself, I pulled him in and wrapped my arms around him, crushing him to my chest. He struggled, cursing softly for a moment.

“I remember.” A sob left me and the guilt I felt before made my limbs heavy, “Not all of it but I remember Sans. I’m so fucking sorry.” He stiffened in my hold and then relaxed, following me to the floor as my legs shook and I cried. Emotions hit me like a freight train. 

“Took you long enough,” He mumbled and I felt him wrap me up to hug me back. I could feel it, like a rubber band snapping somewhere in my mind and the spell that had locked everything away gave. 

We had been taking a trip to the park at the base of the mountain, my parents had been fighting in the front seat. We wrapped around a tree and I had gotten jostled around in the process. I tried to look for help, but had hit my head hard against the window and ended up stumbling tonto a cave where I fell and shattered my leg. 

Wings, Sans and Papyrus’ father, was a doctor in the underground and nursed me back to health, a process that had taken nearly a full year, before sending me off at the barrier where a woman had stripped me of my memories and pushed me back through time so it wouldn’t seem like I had been gone so long. 

And Sans, he had been my friend while I had lived there. He had given me my locket, a small shard of his soul and made me promise to come back. A promise because he and I were bound by something so rare that Wings had feared what might happen to me if I stayed. 

They had protected me, healed me, and set me free.

When I finally stopped crying, I pulled back from Sans, wiping my face and leaning back against the doorframe once more, a new conflicted feeling bubbling in my stomach. 

“I have to go,” I whispered to the palms of my hands, “I have to, but I don’t want to leave again.”

Sans stood up slowly, shaking out his arms and legs for a moment before offering me his hand. 

“You gotta get back,” I let him pull me up and he reached behind him, handing me my bag.

“I’ll come back,” I blurted and the pain that hit his face made me regret the words as soon as they came out.

“Sure thing, “ He shoved one hand in his pocket, “C’mon We don’t have a lotta time left, I know a shortcut.” He grabbed my upper arm, mumbling for me to hold on tight and suddenly a rush hit me as the floor gave way. I screamed, clutching his jacket even after the floor suddenly appeared back beneath our feet and the sound of crickets and darkness replaced the din of his home. We were near the base of the mountain, only a short distance from the fence and it’s dark outside. 

I was scratching a layer of frost on my arm when he turned to walk away. 

“Wait!” I grabbed his sleeve, “How do I know where to find you? To get back.” 

He seemed wary before turning fully, reaching out and tapping the small metal ball on my chest. 

“Found your way pretty well the first time. Try not to get lost out there.” With that he was gone, phasing through the earth and leaving me in the dark on my own. Even as I descended the mountain towards the covered fence, I couldn’t help but shake the feeling that I deserved this, how cold he had been towards me, just leaving like that. 

That dread only crept worse as I got closer to the apartment. I had told Danny I’d keep him updated, and I had gone and passed out and let my phone die. One things for sure, I’m gonna have a lot of explaining to do.


	4. A House Safe from Prying Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Panic builds form the threat of being caught.
> 
> Why doesn't anything add up?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote this chapter four times because I wasn't sure where I wanted it to go at first. Things will slow just a tiny bit from here.
> 
> Maybe.

There’s a lot of things that I readied myself for, coming back into the apartment. I was prepared for Daniel to be awake, to be worried, maybe even be mad. Hell, I wouldn’t even be surprised if there was an officer in the living room.

What I wasn’t prepared for is to see my roommate sitting on the couch for the first time ever, sipping a mug of tea with a duffel bag at his feet.

“Have fun on the mountain?” Cue the record scratch. 

“Wha-” I blurted dumbly, “Why would-”

“Oh come on Ali, you and I both know I’m not dumb enough not to put two and two together.” He sighed and stood up, looking exhausted. He grabbed the duffel bag, hoisting it over his shoulder and putting the mug on the table, “We gotta go, I’ll explain in the truck.”

“You knew?” I blinked away a fuzziness in my eyes, “Are you mad at me?Are you turning me in?” He wouldn’t do that, right?

“Listen Ali, we’ve got a short window here, I need you to trust me.” His eyes were furious, worried, sad. The raw vulnerability gave me pause. I wanted nothing more than to get a hot shower, climb in bed and just try to pretend this was all a dream. 

Just one big, fucked up dream. So I said so. 

“There’s no time,” was his only reply, moving past me and throwing open the door, grabbing me by the wrist and yanking hard. My instinct was to fight, to scream at him and tell him no. I couldn’t, my body just letting him take me away from our cozy little apartment without much struggle. It was like something had taken control of me for a moment, and I only snapped back to my senses when I was near the passenger side of the truck. 

“Danny let go of me!” I yelled, digging my nails into his wrist, “you’re not making any sense! No one will know, I went when no one was looking-”

“They have cameras set at the border, Ali.” My blood ran cold, watching him smooth a hand over his face, “The treaty says no patrols at night and trespassers lose their protection from either side, now get. In. The. Truck.”

“Treaty?” There was a warble in my voice even as I climbed into the passenger seat, “Nothing’s making any sense Danny, you’re scaring me.”

He plopped the duffel bag into my lap and started the engine, pulling out sharply onto the main road from the parking lot.

“You remember when I told you I wasn’t allowed visitors at my job?” I nodded, “I’m part of the security team that associates with the people on the mountain. I’m actually their representative.” 

“You told me you worked at a factory,” I hated how quiet my voice sounded.

“I know, I didn’t like lying to you Ali. My job is dangerous and considering your history-” He swerves slightly as another car tries to cut him off, “I didn’t want to encourage you to go searching. It’s all pretty stupid now I guess.”

He reaches across my lap and pulls a small file folder from the glove box and hands it to me. 

“In there is a copy of the treaty, you’ll need that if anything goes wrong. There’s a clause about voluntary protection. There’s also a file I found in the archives, but that’s not important right now.”

“Where are you taking me?” I ask as he turns down a dirt road just off the main road, the uneven terrain and his speed making my teeth chatter. Anger prickles my skin along with a sudden fear on how fast we’re going.

“I’m taking you to see my mom, she’ll help you get back into the mountain and keep you safe.”

“Wait what?” A hole jostled me, making me nearly crack my head against the window, “Your mom lives on Spencer  _ on the other side of town _ .” I was nearly yelling, “What the fuck has gotten into you?” He pressed hard on the brakes, stopping us just before a cabin off the path. The cabin was set inside the fence, but the fence itself seemed to stop and then reform at the border of the property. 

I swallowed back the lump in my throat. I just want to go home. 

Daniel shut off the engine, plunging us into relative darkness, dawn just starting to rise.

“Remember the earthquake like eleven years ago?” I nodded, “I was the cause of it. I can’t explain it all to you now, but I need you to stay here for a while while I sort everything out.” He reached for me, idly smoothing my hair and the gesture, although not a rarity for him, felt almost uncomfortably intimate.

“You were the one to break the barrier?” I whispered and he just nodded, opening up his door and climbing out. After a moment, I did the same, pulling the duffel bag- holy shit it’s heavy- with me. 

“I packed clothes and some of your stuff from the bathroom. I made sure to include your charger but you can’t get in contact with me unless I call you first.” he motioned for me to follow him up the winding driveway, “Tori will help you understand what’s going on and I’ll see if Paps or Sans can stop by tomorrow to show you how things work here. Most of the monsters here know me as Frisk, Danniel is my middle name.”

“Wait-” I stopped walking at the mention of the two brothers, “Sans and Papyrus? I met them today, they’re the ones I was with before.”

“I know,” that intimate gesture again, it made me shiver, “Sans texted me when he found you in the woods. I’m one of the only humans allowed to cross the border. I would have come and got you then but the teams already started their rounds at the fence. I couldn’t risk it.”

“My child?” A voice, soft and motherly wafted towards us from the porch of the cabin, just a short distance where we had stopped. A large woman- a large  _ goat _ \- stood in the doorway, the glow of the inside surrounding her like a halo. She was wearing a purple dress with a robe pulled over top. Her fur was soft looking and puffy white, and her eyes were all smiles. 

“Hey Ma, sorry to ask this on such short notice.” Danny rubbed the back of his neck, looking a little sheepish. 

“Oh that’s not a bother, my dear. You know I’m always here if you need me,” she turned to me and her expression seemed a little somber, “this all must be frightening, my child. Come in, my name is Toriel, let me make you some tea.”

I turned to Danny, who just shrugged. He gave me a brief hug, a promise to call me as soon as he could, and walked back to his truck to head back from where we came. 

“Miss Alexis?” A large paw gently placed itself on my shoulder and I blinked away tears that threatened to spill.

“Let’s get you settled in, my dear. I think a hot bath and some tea will do you some good.” I let her lead me into the house, my knees wobbly and my mind racing. What have I gotten myself into? All I wanted was to remember, and now I’m being forced through some sort of red tape and being coddled by a six foot goat lady in a cozy cabin that smells like cinnamon and escargot. My best friend is not who I thought he was, I’m pretty sure Sans still hates me, and I’m just supposed to pretend like everythings normal?

Okay, so the bath did help a little. 

The tub in Toriel’s bathroom was massive, almost like a miniature hot tub, so I was able to soak for a while. I was grateful that Danny had packed my shampoo and body wash, and by the time I pulled the drain I felt just a tad more relaxed in my fuzzy pajama bottoms and an old Tshirt, thumbing the metal ball still fluttering. 

From there, Toriel took me to a guest room and set a tea tray on the nightstand, piled with small sandwiches and a large slice of some sort of pie. 

“Go ahead and settle in, my dear. I will be downstairs if you need anything, we can talk when you feel up to it.” She gave me a small pat on the top of my head and left me alone in the room. 

First act of business was to pull out my phone charger and charge my phone, eating a few of the sandwiches and sipping on the tea. It was the same tea Papyrus had given me before, although a lot less sweet this time. As I dug through the duffle bag to take inventory of everything inside, the envelope slid off into the floor and caught my attention. Daniel said I’d need it, so I should probably read it right?

I slid the envelope into the drawer of the end table. I’ll deal with that in the morning. Instead, I power on my phone and watch as it buzzes alive with notifications. 

2 new messages from Sans. 

I stare at the screen for a few, he must have put his number in before when he had my phone. What else did he do with it? Did he go through it? It’s not like I have anything to find, really.

It’s then that it dawns on me and that all familiar rage hits me again. 

Daniel’s call had been a lie. All of those messages, the conversation we had while I was in Sans’ room, all of it was fake. He knew where I was, he knew who I was with. Why go through all of this when he knew I’d have to be taken away anyway? Why wouldn’t he just tell me that he knew where I was, try to explain what was happening or maybe even just direct me to Toriel’s or to stay where I was? Why try so hard to guilt trip me into coming home knowing I couldn’t?

I’m just about to rip into him through a text message when I remember his warning earlier. Maybe there was a reason? Or maybe he was hoping it wasn’t true, or that I’d tell him where I was and was testing me?

Instead, I pop open the messages from Sans. 

_ Hope you don’t mind I snuck my number in your phone.  _

_ I hope you get home safe.  _

I hover for a moment, wondering if I should even respond. I’ll see him tomorrow, maybe, so it’ll probably be more of an awkward mess if I don’t. I don’t think I can deal with more awkward messes right now. What should I say though? He probably already knows what’s going on, or at least he will. We didn’t part on the best of terms either, but the fact that he still sent that second message means he must care just a little right?

There’s so much I want to ask him, so much I want to talk to him about. What happened to Wings? Is he still around? What did he mean all those years about us being soulmates? Does it have anything to do with that little blue flame? And what was that heart? Why did it feel heavy? 

After a long debate I type out just a short  **_We need to talk_ ** and hit send before I can back out of it. I lay on my side and start going through my phone, trying to find something to distract myself from everything going on. Today’s been one hell of a day, and it doesn’t show signs of stopping anytime soon. 

I’m not sure when I started to drift but I'm vaguely aware of a ding from my phone just before I finally sink back to sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this story is mainly sort of my own AU. Doesn't really have a name, but it's a thing I guess. 
> 
> Brief overview of Daniel's point of view:
> 
> Daniel was at work watching security footage and thought he recognized Alexis on one of the monitors. He contacted Sans (who was on sentry duty at the time) who confirmed she was there. He immediately tried to keep others from seeing the footage, tried to play it off in case she got stuck there for a few days. Cue an alert about a potential human trespasser that needs to be detained and he packed a duffel. 
> 
> More to be explained later?


	5. Morning Headaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A quick look through the envelope raises even more questions, and Ali realizes there's even more complicated memories to figure out.

_ “I’m so sorry my dear.” A warbling voice, smooth as silk, comes from just beside my head. I’m in a white room that smells medicinal, like it’s been cleaned too many times. A shadow blocks the light above me and I can feel my body start to shake, straining slightly when I realize I’ve been bound to a table.  _

_ “If there were another way,” the voice moves even as the figure stays still, “but time is short. I hope some day you will forgive me.” _

_ The darkness grows and then I’m standing in front of a large glass tank. I press my palm to the cool glass and a skeletal hand presses from the other side. A loud static hits me and I cover my ears desperately, my voice drowned out in the noise as I scream.  _

_ The static becomes a ringing and I’m standing in a bedroom now, a soft blue light in the corner beside a bookshelf overflowing with ragged books. There’s a twin bed and a crib pressed to one side of the room and a messy desk at the other side.  _

_ I move to the crib and see Sans, curled around a bundle I know is Papyrus. He’s sobbing softly, his voice distant as he speaks into the bundle. I reach out and grab his hoodie- _

_ I’m sitting on my knees in the snow, clutching a bundled Papyrus. A large alligator monster snarls and dives for Sans as he stands before me and lurches in place, it’s soul a beautiful blue as it’s sent into a nearby tree. It shrieks and claws at its own soul- it’s gone feral from LV so it doesn’t realize- and shudders as it collapses into dust.  _

_ Sans turns to me with tears streaking down his sockets- void completely of light- and I realize that I’m crying too.  _

_ Then I’m sitting in the living room of Wing’s house, there’s panic in the air. Wings has his hands pressed to my chest and there’s a bright green light. I can taste copper, everything feels heavy. I look down to where his hands are and notice the red.  _

_ There’s so much red.  _

I wake up with a start, bolting up in the bed and wheezing. I hear my phone going off on the bedside table, probably what woke me up in the first place, and practically dive for it, nearly ending up on the floor when I tangle in the covers. 

“Hello?” I don’t even read the front when I swipe the call button. No sooner does the word come out, the line dies and I’m left staring at an unknown number flashing across my screen “call ended.”

Weird.

I have two missed text messages from Sans too.

_ We can talk later tomorrow. On the clock right now dollface. _

_ You sure know how to stir up trouble. Try to keep it on the down low.  _

The messages feel cold, detached. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, all things considering, and I’m glad he at least decided to respond at all. He also didn’t completely shoot down the idea of talking things out, which is nice. 

My dream creeps up in the back of my mind and I shiver, clutching the pendant around my throat for a beat. It’s not strange for me to have nightmares, it’s pretty normal, and considering the hell yesterday was it’s not surprising to say the least. 

What scares me is how  _ real _ they seemed. Real enough that-

Nope. Not gonna go there. Not everything is a memory, I’m just freak out and stressed. 

Right?

I shake the thoughts and decide to sneak into the bathroom to brush my teeth and get some semblance of myself back. Digging through my duffel, I inwardly groan at the clothes inside. There’s just a few pairs of jeans, a single pair of jean shorts and a shit ton of t-shirts. There's also two knitted sweaters, my old hoodie with a huge rust stain on the front and three changes of underclothes. He didn’t even pack me any socks and it seemed that there was only the one change of pajamas and only a single bra. 

I guess I can’t be too upset. He was always weird about touching anything of mine, something he said came from a childhood trauma he didn’t like to talk about. I guess I should be happy to have a least some of my stuff with me.

I change quickly and debate for a while on the hoodie before tying a sweater around my waist instead. It’s hot out on the surface, but if I end up back in Snowdin I want to have something warm. From there I pull out the envelope from yesterday and flop onto the bedroom floor to open it. The floorboards are cool and worn and the only light in the room comes from a table lamp that I scoot to the edge and bend to better illuminate the papers as I pull them out. My phone flashes and I note that it’s nearly 8 in the morning. 

Not too terribly early, I wonder when Toriel usually gets up in the morning.

Inside the envelope is a copy of a legal document, the treaty. I put that to the side, it’s better I leave that for when I have someone to explain it to me. I’m not really one for legal jargon and something about the text makes me nervous. 

Behind the treaty is a series of papers- profiles. They’re almost all monsters, pages depicting their faces and some information on them. The first page in the stack is a list of definitions and explanations about monster SOULs and STATS. The first line on the page stands out in bold print:

**Due to the apparent anomalous activity regarding time in the Underground before the barrier’s destruction, certain attributes such as age and maturity may be unobtainable or speculated. Any other anomalous activity must be recorded and stored in locker 2-18-43b.**

So they know about the weird time differences in the Underground, like what happened with me. Does that mean they know about my year there? Were there others who came back who were just never announced to the public because they were only gone for a day or two but had actually lived years? How big of a gap could there be between the surface and the Underground? Did it fluctuate?

With a thrumming migraine threatening to surface, I move on. 

The first in the stack of profiles is Papyrus, his grinning face a stark contrast to the navy blue background and his eye sockets squinted ever so slightly. 

_ Papyrus, age unknown. Skeletal monster with a LV of 1. Height 6’9”, weight undetermined. Speaks of himself in third person. Excitable and childlike despite full maturity. Shares a home with his brother in Snowdin underground. Threat level minimal.  _

I flip to the next one. 

_ Sans, age unknown. Skeletal monster with an undetermined LV. Height 5’ 2”, weight undetermined. Prone to using humor to avoid questioning. Lazy and clearly highly intelligent. Loyal and protective to his brother. Shows signs of post traumatic stress disorder. Shares a home with his brother in Snowdin underground. Threat level undetermined- proceed with caution.  _

I pause, suddenly feeling pretty filthy. It feels like I’m reading something I shouldn’t, is it really okay to go through these? There’s some monsters in here I don’t know anything about, and for what I can tell whoever had written these doesn’t really know them too well either. 

Also,  _ undetermined LV? _ Does that mean that he just didn’t tell them, or is there something they used to try to look? According to the sheet before the profiles, LV is determined by a persons ability to literally  _ murder _ . Sans would have been smart enough to give them a number, right? 

The monster in my dream makes my throat dry. Does that mean those were actual memories? 

I thumb through the rest of them, ten in total. They look like excerpts, only the first page of each profile. One is Daniel and the sight of his slightly exhausted face against the Navy background fills me with a bravery I didn’t know I had. 

_ Daniel “Frisk” Mardis, Age 20. _ That means this was recorded not too long before I met Danny the first time.  _ Human, LV undetermined. Height 6’1”. Weight 210 lbs.  _ Theres a long black box covering the rest of the beginning portion, like someone had taken a black marker and swiped it over the information. The only part that’s left untouched says  _ After the events of the Barrier’s destruction, subject has shown that he is unable to access the “menu” in which previously allowed for “SAVES” and “RESETS.”  _

I mentally shake the bombardment of questions, taking a few shaky breaths to calm myself down. This is a lot- too much to take in all at once. 

The last page nearly has me throwing the stack onto the floor. It’s me. My face is scrunched up and rather young, but not nearly as young as it should be. I stare at the face of myself at 18 years old and feel nausea settle into my throat. It’s my drivers licence image. 

_ Alexis Filora, Age 18.  _ I had gotten my licence right after I had agreed to move in with Danny. The convenient timing isn’t lost on me but I try to shake it off. 

_ Human, LV undetermined.  _ I let out a breath. They must not have a way of seeing LV after all, although the thought of seeing my own numbers makes my spine tingle. I don’t recall ever-

Nope. Not gonna think about it. 

_ Height 5’2”. Weight 165 lbs. According to medical history, subject is prone to dissociation and panic attacks. Has been shown to act violently in her sleep and has been placed into multiple care facilities as well as foster homes since the reported crash that left her stranded in the Underground. According to surface time, subject was only below for approximately a week, although upon medical examination it seems that she has aged-  _ There’s another black swipe taking away the rest of the paragraph. I let out a frustrated groan and shove all the papers back into the endtable drawer and rub my temples. The sheets are all fine and dandy, but they haven’t told me really anything I haven’t already been told. 

Why does it hurt so much to see it on paper just how much about me that others know that I don’t?

I grab my cellphone and hover over San’s name in my message app. I think back to all the memories I’ve gotten back and then to my dream. Surely he would know what that’s all about, but what if it’s a subject he doesn’t want to talk about? He already probably hates my guts for waltzing into his life out of the blue after years without so much as an inkling as to who he is. 

But why is that my fault? I never asked to lose everything back then, and how could I have known how bad I was hurting him if I barely knew his name? 

_ Oh but you knew so much more than you thought, didn’t you Sunshine? _ Her voice threatens my already sore skull and her laugh reverberates between my ears like she’s in an empty room. She sounds so much louder, so much clearer than usual. 

_ Just you wait. Soon you’ll remember me too, and then you’ll  _ **_really_ ** _ wish you’d stayed home with Ruzz. _

I’m on my feet in a second, practically jumping down the stairs and winding through the house until I’m out on the front porch. The sun has barely risen and the air is crisp and cool against my slightly sweaty skin. The pounding in my head is less prominent, but the echo of her laughter still aches against my temples. If I thought she seemed always near me before, now it’s like she’s pressed to my back, breath in my ear. 

Maybe she’s closer because I’m so closer to her.

**Are you still on the clock?** I send the message while I pace in the front lawn, rocks and stray twigs threatening my bare feet as I try to dull the panic that tries to claw up into my throat. There’s a crackling sort of noise, like ice cracking in a cup of water, and then Sans is standing a few feet in front of me, looking haggard and swaying slightly on his feet. 

“Just got off a few hours ago.” His face is scrunched, head tilting slightly as he watches me pace back and forth, “you’re gonna slice your foot open or something, c’mon.” I let him lead me back onto the porch and onto the rickety looking bench swing. It takes me a few deep breaths and a very bouncy leg before I can calm down enough to look him in the eye and say hello. 

“You look like shit.” I resist the urge to flinch at his words, “Of course, considering circumstances I guess that’s not all surprising, but I thought Tori would have at least given you something to help you sleep.”

“Says the bonehead who looks like he’s about to pass out just breathing.” I shot back with a little more spite than I wanted to. He seemed to take a minute to process what I had said and then let out a hearty laugh, leaning back against the wood of the swing. 

“Yea, I guess you got me there. ‘M just bone tired I guess.” He closed his sockets, “I heard your soul screeching all the way from Pap’s station, sounded like you were gonna have a meltdown.”

“You heard my soul?” The thought makes me grimace, “But how?”

He lazily opens a single socket and his hand comes out, bony phalange tapping the metal of the pendant and making it chime, “‘nd here I was hopin’ you were rememberin’ me for real,” he pauses, “I get all hopeful and then-”

“They come and go, like flashes,” he pulls away as if he wasn’t expecting me to hear him. Maybe he really is tired. 

“Flashes eh?” His eyelights search my face for a moment before he leans back again and stares lightly at the roof of the porch. We sit in silence for a long while, unsure of what to say. Should I ask about my dream? About the memory of us as kids? About him telling me to come back and that I was his soulmate? What does that even mean?

“What ever happened to Wings?” I say instead and the jerked reaction it pulls from him makes me reget it almost immediately. He’s suddenly stiff and his fuzzy eyelights are sharper, but the reaction slowly fades and he takes a deep sigh, running his hand over his face. 

“Listen Ali, as much as I know how important all this is, I actually feel like I just might pass out here and I’ve had a very, very long night. Me and Paps will be here later this afternoon and I won’t be patrolling for the next few nights, so can we leave this for later?” His eyes are pleading, his usual grin turned into a strained sort of half-frown. It hurts to see him like this, and I’m reaching out to pull him in before my brain can catch up with my body. He slumps in my hold almost immediately and a cooling wave starts in my chest, spreading out to my fingers and toes and soothing my head. 

“I’m sorry Sans,” my voice is stronger than I feel, “please don’t give up on me.”

“Never,” he pulls back and his grin is back, “just try not to get into anymore trouble, would ya?” I can’t help but laugh and nod my head. It’s like a huge coil of tension finally unwound itself from my chest, seeing him with an actual, unguarded smile on his face. He looks younger somehow, and the fluttering pendant glows ever so gently, making his eyelights almost look like cyan fireflies. 

He hugs me once more before vanishing in a circle of frost, saying he’ll text me after he gets a nap in. I debate for a while on going back to bed myself, but remembering my dream has me hesitant to crawl back into bed. 

Instead, I turn myself back to the porch swing and settle in to watch the sky. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Being an essential worker is greeeeat. Especially since, with everything opening up, more people are getting sick and more hours need working! Stay safe everybody!


	6. A sit down chat

Toriel came back to the house around 11, apparently she gets up at 6 and harvests fruits, berries and vegetables around the property. She sat with me on the porch swing, a tray of tea between us, and made polite conversation before excusing herself to make lunch. I offered to help her in the kitchen, but she only shooed me out to settle in the living room. 

The living room was sparse, like it was hardly ever used. There was a plush sofa and a recliner that looked well worn, a small bookshelf stocked with what looked like an assortment of joke books and snail information, and a large fireplace that was unlit and looked like it desperately needed cleaned out. The walls were covered in pastel yellow wallpaper with swirling flower designs and the floor was weathered wood that threatened splinters while you walked. Overall, it had a sort of comfy, home-y feel to it all.

I decide on wandering back up to the spare room to grab the packet of papers from the end table and then make my way back to the livingroom. I sit on the floor and spread out the papers in front of me for a moment, just trying to take in the pictures of the monsters in front of me. Obviously, if Danny thought these people were important enough to add them to the pile, I’ll need to at least be able to spot them, right? 

And hopefully, I can see if they’re important to keep close or to keep far away. 

There’s also the treaty, and I hope that Toriel will be willing to help me understand it all. If she’s really a neutral party in all of this, that means she has to be well versed in something so important to both sides right?

Toriel’s page is right after Sans. She seems angry in the photo, like she had just given someone hell before being told to stand in front of the camera. Her white fur looks to have a few stains on them, little dirt marks litter parts of her face and chest from where I can see. 

Toriel. Age unknown. Goat monster with a LV of 4. Height 5’ 9.” Unknown Weight. Ex-wife to King Asgore in the underground and the only known monster to have been inhabiting the RUINS. Extremely maternal and defensive towards children and those who she perceives as vulnerable. Proceed with caution when provoked. 

It is unknown at this time if she had any knowledge about (redacted) or any other experiments found within (redacted).

Currently resides in AR-15, the only NEUTRAL zone on Ebott. Any communication between (the rest of the paragraph has been blacked out)

So Toriel used to be the queen? Why did she leave? 

I thumb through the papers, but there’s no Asgore to be found amongst the rest of the sheets. Also, what experiments are they referring to?   
I stare at the black lines marring where text should be with a building rage bubbling up in me, why is everything blacked out? Was it removed so I wouldn’t see or is that how these sheets were stored? Who are they hiding this from?

Any why can’t I get any real fucking answers?

The next page is what looks to be a person made of literal fire dressed in a butler’s sort of garb. 

Grillby. Age Unknown. Fire Elemental with an unknown LV. Height varies. Resides in a bar named after himself- the only known NEUTRAL zone in the Underground. Avoids vocal conversation and water- the latter most likely to avoid injury. 

It has been speculated that he is a soldier from the war before the barrier. This has neither been confirmed nor denied, although there was some reaction when presented with photo WR0153.

War? Before the barrier?

I’d never heard about a war, so how long ago could that have possibly happened? Especially since it seems that the time in the underground was fast compared to the surface, how many years ago could that have been, and then how old could this guy possibly be in order to have been a potential soldier during that time?

When I had fallen into the underground, Sans and Pap were both children, so it couldn’t be that all monsters lived that long, right? And the report on me said that I had aged underground-

Does that mean I’m actually older than I thought? It would only be about a year, if I remember correctly, but still…

“Is everything alright my dear?” I nearly chuck the paper when Toriel’s voice breaks through my thoughts. She’s holding a worn green apron in one massive paw, smearing something onto it and looking at me with a rather worried expression. I shove the paper upsidedown onto the rest of the stack and flush, like a child caught with their hand in a cookie jar. 

“Sorry, I was uh-” does she know about these profiles? “I was reading some of the things D-Frisk left for me.”

Her stare continues, a slowly drifting frown on her features until she heaves a sigh. 

“I’ve finished making lunch, if you’d like we can go over the papers he sent while we eat. I know there’s a lot to cover, dear, but some food and tea may help.”

I scoop up all the papers and the envelope and follow her into a rather large diningroom. It’s sparsely decorated unlike the rest of the house, and theres a cherrywood cabinet set to one side with a hefty padlock attached to the handles at the front. The table’s set for four, each place set up with a steaming cup of tea and a large platter of sandwiches and some sort of potato chip like food thats multicolored and shimmers slightly in the light of the long tube lights set into the ceiling that buzz lightly. In the center is a tea set as well as another dish of the candies she had brought to the spare room last night. There’s also a few small tea plates with berries and sliced fruit on them. She motions for me to sit just as a knock sounds from beyond the doorway and she excuses herself back out from the room. 

I contemplate eating while I wait, my stomach growling lightly at the prospect of food, but I don’t have to wait long before Toriel’s voice wafts back into the room along with the excitable tone of Papyrus. Sans is following behind them, looking a little rough like he’d just rolled out of bed, but he seems a little more cheerful nonetheless. 

“Oh! Hello Again Miss Alexis!” Papyrus chimes, coming over to sit in the chair beside me, “I Know It’s Only Been A Short While Since We Last Spoke, Are You Doing Well?”

“Uh, yea,” I can’t help the small smile that creeps along my cheeks at his hyper mood, “thanks again for helping me the other day. Yesterday? It seems like weeks have passed, honestly.”

We got lost for a while in conversation, mostly Papyrus talking about how his job apparently makes healing injured people from the mountain quite common (although he wouldn’t say why) and talking about how he’s learned to be quite efficient at it. He also talked about his love for cooking as the four of us picked through our lunches. 

The weird potato chips (or potato chisps, as Sans corrected with a mouthful of ketchup) weren’t crunchy but rather kind of spongy and seemed to evaporate on the tongue like cotton candy. They tasted almost like beets. At least the sandwiches seemed rather normal, just cold cuts on bread. 

Sans and Toriel, at some point, started throwing puns back and forth, causing a very frustrated Papyrus to start literally glowing orange as he practically begged them to stop. Overall, it felt relaxing to see everyone in such good spirits, and it made some of the stress weighing on my shoulders lift bit by bit. 

And then the pain came like a hurricane. 

I clutched my head as a sharp, shooting pain ripped from ear to ear, leaving behind a ringing sensation. 

It’s almost like being a family again, ey Sunshine?

“Miss?” There’s a foggy sort of feeling that seems to creep out from my neck and I realise that Papyrus had taken one of his gloves off and pressed his hand against one of my own, a faint green glow softly reflecting on his face. 

“Sorry,” I let him pry my hand from my head and let the other one fall, “bad migraine.”

“You should probably lay back down if your head is hurting my dear-”

“No!” I feel bad at how Toriel jumps slightly and try to calm myself, “I mean, no I’m okay. I really just want to go over the papers and figure everything out right now, if that’s alright.” Papyrus squeezes my hand and I cant help the creeping flush when I realise that we were still connected. His bones feel warm and there are tiny fractures and divots that feel almost like worn porcelain. 

“Right,” She clears her throat and adjusts in her seat, “I suppose there’s no time like the present! We should first go over the treaty, as well as your more permanent residence here.”

“Am I not staying here?” Another squeeze.

“I’m afraid that wont be possible, although you are more than welcome to visit whenever you’d like.” She raises a hand to stop me from interrupting again, “Second page of the treaty, my home is a neutral zone and in order to maintain neutral I cannot house humans or monsters long term. Typically from here you would either decide to stay in the neutral zone underground or beyond the fence in the humans domain but the humans zone has been compromised too many times. My child told me that you had been there in those situations and for that I am sorry.”

“I’ve never been in a neutral zone,” I scrunch my nose, “and why would I be in one if I hadn’t been here on the mountain till-” I stopped, dumbfounded.

“Are you saying,” chest starting to hurt, “that those foster homes I was bounced around from-”

“I don’t know the exact details, but as far as I know yes.”

“Your government doesn’t like to play with chance,” Sans grumbled from across the table, glaring at the tabletop, “your lucky ya ended up with Frisk instead of in a casket fer knowin’ too much.”

“BROTHER!” I jumped from the volume of Papyrus’ voice and he gave my hand a light squeeze in apology before changing to his inside voice, “There Is No Reason To Scare Her Like That Sans, Have Some Couth.”

Toriel cleared her throat loudly, “As I was saying, boys, because of recent events it seems that citizenship beyond the fence may or may not be an option, so you will be stayin ghere on mount Ebbott for the time being. According to the treaty, you will be allowed the same freedoms that all monsters have here. In order to stay and have these freedoms, though, you are required to go through trials and must remain under a monsters custody until these trials are done.”

“So what sort of trials are there?” I absently rub my thumb along the bones in my hand, thankful to have something to ground me. 

“It’s mainly sort of a trial run through the underground and aboveground than actual trials,” Sans pipes up, gaze wandering from the table to my eyes slowly, “It’s basically just having someone follow you wherever you go for about a month or so to make sure you’re not gonna hurt someone or get yourself hurt. Once you understand how things work and your intent comes out clean, your free to do what you please.”

“And I’m guessing that’s where you two come in?”

“Me, specifically,” There’s something in the was his face twitches for a moment that has more questions popping up.

“And I don’t get a choice in the matter of who it’ll be?” I want to flinch at the glare he shoots me. 

“No.”

“Under normal circumstances, the monster who would be following you would be chosen because most who wander here don’t know any of us.The only time you will not have to be escorted is when you are within the neutral zones.”

“So I can go here or to Grillby’s without being tailed like a criminal?” There’s more bite to my words than I meant, but the idea of having to be followed around is getting more and more annoying. 

“And whenever you’re at the house.”

“I must also point out that because of the treaty you will not be allowed to communicate with anyone outside of the fence,” Toriel slips a phone across the table at me, “this means that your phone will be destroyed and you will need to use this one for any communication so long as your here.”

“Destroyed? But what about Danny? What about all the people at my old job? Wha-”

“I’m sorry, but you can no longer exist out there so long as you are here.” I hate the way her eyes look so sad. I hate the way it seems like I’m a lost child. I want to scream, I want to tell them that I’m not some venerable thaing that needs to be protected. 

Do you really have a choice here? C’mon, don’t tell me you really think you had any control all these years do you? Just look at your soul, you lost the moment the car crashed.

“I should've died in that crash.” Three heads shot at attention and I realised I had said it out loud. I grit my teeth.

“I’m sorry, just losing my mind here,” there was no humor in my laugh, “Is there anything else in this treaty I’m supposed to know? Theres no clause for like harvesting organs or something right?”

“Uh- no, there’s nothing of the sort my dear, I- are you sure you’re alright to be discussing this right now? We can-”

“I’m okay, Tori, I promise,” I rub my temples with my spare hand, “It’s just a lot to happen in only two days. I just want to get this over with so I can figure out my place here.”

The next hour is spent explaining the basics of monster culture. Monsters are made of magic, their entire existence based on the soul and built around intent. Souls are intimate and private things, and should always be kept hidden. The necklace Sans had given me would be enough to deter any monsters from questioning my place on Ebbott, and apparently would also make it extremely difficult for any monster to remove my soul. I couldn’t help but notice he kept steering the conversation away from what the necklace was, or when he had given it to me, much to Toriel’s obvious displeasure. 

I would be able to spend one more night here at Toriel’s home while the two skelebros set up the spare room in their home for me. Apparently, there is also a sort of balck market to get me additional clothing and anything else I’ll need here, and there are a few other humans on the mountain as well, although most of them live aboveground rather than in the underground. 

“There are five in total including you,” Toriel said as she topped off my tea, “only one still resides in the underground.”

“And you should avoid the other three,” Sans pitched in, “They’re dangerous. Especially the redhead, she barely passed the trials.I think if she wasn’t a hunter, she would've been kicked completely.”

“A Hunter? Why would being able to shoot a deer matter?”

“Not hunting animals, hunting Ferals.” Sans seemed to debate for a moment before he continued, “ We’ve got zones up top that are marked off with tags, you got a map lying around Tori?”

Toriel hopped up for a moment, coming back with a fairly small map of mount Ebott, colorful lines marring it’s surface with mixtures of numbers and letters stamped in either green, yellow or red. 

“These lines are boundaries although they’re not really set in stone. Red means it’s a hostile environment, lots of ferals or people with high LV who were banished topside. Theres only two of those and their at the opposite side of the mountain, although MX-116 is right by the old exit to the underground so you gotta be careful. Yellow is medium, just basic caution mostly because of debris or unstable ground. Green is safe and white-” he points at the far upper lefthand corner, “Is neutral, where we are now. There’s a copy of this map on your phone on one of the apps. If you’re ever topside during the day somehow without me you need to head here-” He circles three zones attached in a triangle by us, “This is usually where Pap does his rounds with the dog monster crew and Undyne, any of them will lead you back home or at least to Tori or Grillby.”

“You said people hunt Ferals? What are those? Are they like rabid animals?”

“Something like that,” His eyelights are sharp and small for a moment before they revert to normal. It’s silent for a while while I process the information, trying to memorize the map in front of me. Sprawled out on the table as well is all the profiles I was given. I’d been given a brief rundown on everyone, especially focused on Undyne and Grillby (Sans had snatched his and Pap’s profiles before we began, I assume he just didn’t want to talk about them). Undyne is the fish woman captain of the Royal Guard and Papyrus’ mentor. There’s a yellow dinosaur woman named Alphys who is Undyne’s partner and a scientist underground. Next is a friendly ghost named Napstablook and lastly is another member of the Royal Guard, an old and half blind dog monster named Doggo.

“It’s weird he didn’t give you anything on Asgore, but I guess these were who he figured meant the most at the time.”

I zoned out for a while, just sort of letting the idle conversations wash over me and just nodding or making little noises in return. My head was still throbbing and exhaustion was starting to settle, making my eyes droop ever so slightly. 

When Papyrus and Sans stood up to leave, I grabbed Sans’ sleeve before he could leave the diningroom. 

“I still wanna talk to you,” I shifted a bit uncomfortably, “About the charm and the spot on my soul and-”

“I have to go to work in a few hours Ali,” His hand came up and hovered as if he was gonna cup my cheek but hesitated, “I gotta get home with Paps, but you can text me. You’ll have all the time in the world once we get you to Snowdin, okay?” His hands had gloves just like Paps, although his were fingerless cotton while Paps were large red mittens. 

Then he was gone, leaving a patch of frost in the floorboards and a nagging need for a nap in my brain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any spelling or grammar errors. I know its taken a long time for me to update and I just wanted to get this out there.


End file.
